Discussion

help pick a great meal near BAM

I'll be coming in next month to visit and need to know where to go for Italian,American,Small Plates, Bistro---I think I need to be in Atlantic Ave, Cobble Hill Carroll Gardens Smith St or Ft Greene???????? but send me further away if need be

Just looking on line I see Saul, ICI, Belleville, La Lunetta, Bacchus, Chestnut, Frankies457, Fragole but would love to hear from you what you think about these or any others

There's a great place in Fort Greene where I've had brunch many of times. It's called Olea. The service and brunch items are fantastic. From what I've heard and read the dinner menu is just as extensive and delicious.

you've definitely alraedy touched on a few of my neighborhood favorites in: saul, lunetta, chesnut, and fragole. i've heard good things about the others. i would also add to that list: jolie, bar tabac for brunch or late night atmosphere, cube 63 or hibino (on henry st. btwn atlantic and pacific) for sushi. also crave way down henry street in carroll gardens is delicious. i haven't been, but have friends who swear by po. try lucalis for pizza, and nectar on court for casual smoothies and wraps for lunch. also for a casual cheap lunch - nicky's vietnamese sandwiches on atlantic ave.

literally near bam, there is an austrian restaurant - thomas biesl - that i also have not been to, but have heard solid reviews of. and while i dont know ft. greene that well, id add chez oskar and olea to your list of places that people seem to speak very highly of. have fun!

Osteria Convivium is excellent and much the closest to BAM of the quality fifth Avenue joints. Places like ICI are a long walk away and the Smith Street joints and Frankies 457 are in a totally different neighborhood - you would have to cab it to get over to BAM in decent time.

After years of resisting its hipster caché, I finally gave in and tried Franny's, which is on Flatbush about a half mile from BAM. It knocked me out, particularly their clam pizza, which is pretty revelatory. If you're not familiar with Franny's, it's a cramped little artisinal-oriented pizza/italian place. The menu is fairly small, but there's always a great selection of small plates, 3 or 4 pastas, and 6 or 7 pizzas. You can read more and download their always-shifting menu here: http://www.frannysbrooklyn.com/. Pros: it's really delicious, creative, inspired food, with extremely high-quality ingredients that are wonderfully and conscientiously sourced. Cons: it's a very hectic place to eat, loud and always packed. Waits can be outrageous. And it's not cheap (tho certainly around the other places you mentioned). If you can stand the chaos, it's fast becoming one of my fave neighborhood places.

In terms of your list, I have only had terrible, terrible experiences at Belleville. Over-priced, generic french food. And--this is a pet peeve of mine--every time I've gone there, the menu has exaggerated and misrepresented the food. (Example: we ordered a "fresh tuna" sandwich that promised, well, fresh tuna, all sorts of interesting veggies, and other things that generally justified, seemingly, the sandwich's $12.00 price. The sandwich came and it was canned tuna/mayo on a stale baguette with lettuce and tomato. Bleeeech.

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In terms of vatl619 recommendations, my girlfriend has tried Thomas Biesl a couple of times--she's a big fan of German/Austrian food--and has always been disappointed. Not disgusted, just disappointed. And I've never been myself, just spreadin some hearsay...

It does not get mentioned enough, so I will recommend Abistro. Senegalese/French food in a mom and pop place with serioud food. Much closer than most of the places mentioned (with the exception of ICI and Thomas Beisel). It is BYOB.

I had a great meal after my last excursion to BAM at Cafe Lafayette. Very cozy little bistro. Yummy burgers, good moules frites. In spite of it's small size, we didn't have to wait for a table, but the place didn't feel at all empty either. Plus it's BYOB and you pass a liquor store on the walk over from BAM. I highly recommend.

I'll second Cafe Lafayette, and would still recommend Thomas Beisl as well. You can't get any closer to BAM, it's right across the street, and their fried mushroom appetizer, as well as their desserts, are to die for...